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Another Missouri toddler missing; 2nd mom in jail, body found

November 16, 2011 | 9:21
am

A Missouri mother who told police her son disappeared from his crib while she was sleeping has been taken into custody after the boy's body was found near a cemetery.

Jail officials confirmed to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that Shelby A. Dasher, 20, was being held at the St. Louis County Justice Center. According to KMOV.com, police are no longer looking for suspects.

One-year-old Tyler Dasher was reported missing from his crib in the St. Louis suburb of Affton at about 11 a.m. Tuesday. His mother told police she had overslept by mistake, and woke up to find him gone.

Those details were eerily similar to those in another Missouri case, that of "Baby Lisa." Her parents reported last month that she had gone missing from her crib while her mother was sleeping off a night of heavy drinking. Despite a wide-ranging investigation that has included help from the FBI, Baby Lisa has not been found.

Tyler's body was discovered a few hours later near the St. Marcus Cemetery, about a mile from Tyler's home, St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch told the media during a Tuesday news conference.

At that time, Fitch also said that the boy's mother and father, who do not live together, were cooperating with police.

On Wednesday morning, however, a police source told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that officials believe Shelby Dasher killed her son after she "became very, very angry."

The St. Louis County Justice Center told the paper that Dasher was being detained on a "20-hour hold" and that she would be released if charges weren't brought by the time the hold expired.

Friends and relatives of the woman said they found it hard to believe she would harm her son. Nicole Howard, a cousin, described her as devoted: "Shelby takes very good care of her son. She loves him."

Authorities did not release details about the cause of death or the condition of the little boy's body.

Photo: Amanda Cradic, left, and Meagan Mayer, described as best friends of the woman taken into custody, react to news that Tyler Dasher's body was found near a cemetery. Credit: Christian Gooden / Associated Press